The faith of The People is perhaps one of the most complicated in all the Burning Sands. In truth, it is simply that the Ra’shari do not put a great deal of effort into doctrines of faith. The Ra’shari recognize the divinity of many gods, Shilah primarily among them, but they do not worship any of them culturally. Shilah, after all, burned the world. Why should they worship a mad god that probably cannot understand them anyway? As such Ra’shari faith is far more personal in nature than most other factions practice. It is not uncommon to walk into a Ra’shari tent city to see signs of up to a dozen different faiths, or even none at all. These signs are less a matter of true faith however and more prudence on the part of the Ra’shari that recognize the power of the gods and, as travellers, recognize that the best way to deal with certain mystical threats is to do so on their terms.
With belief and practice being so personal, it is also open to a great deal of personal interpretation and mixtures of various faiths that result in what most other traditionalists would refer to as heretical, which does nothing to increase the general opinion of the Ra’shari in such areas, further alienating them. The Ra’shari don’t care overmuch about such ostracization as they are used to it, however, and continue to go about their daily rituals and routines with their usual casual flair. There is one tradition that is omnipresent within Ra’shari culture and faith however, as relates to the telling of the Chronicle. Storytelling is taken very seriously among the People and every night when the caravans come to rest, one of the People is chosen to tell a story for the rest of their caravan that night. It is an honor to be chosen for this and a great sign of trust from the rest of the Caravan in the chosen person’s wisdom.
Ra'Shari Faith
The faith of The People is perhaps one of the most complicated in all the Burning Sands. In truth, it is simply that the Ra’shari do not put a great deal of effort into doctrines of faith. The Ra’shari recognize the divinity of many gods, Shilah primarily among them, but they do not worship any of them culturally. Shilah, after all, burned the world. Why should they worship a mad god that probably cannot understand them anyway? As such Ra’shari faith is far more personal in nature than most other factions practice. It is not uncommon to walk into a Ra’shari tent city to see signs of up to a dozen different faiths, or even none at all. These signs are less a matter of true faith however and more prudence on the part of the Ra’shari that recognize the power of the gods and, as travellers, recognize that the best way to deal with certain mystical threats is to do so on their terms.
With belief and practice being so personal, it is also open to a great deal of personal interpretation and mixtures of various faiths that result in what most other traditionalists would refer to as heretical, which does nothing to increase the general opinion of the Ra’shari in such areas, further alienating them. The Ra’shari don’t care overmuch about such ostracization as they are used to it, however, and continue to go about their daily rituals and routines with their usual casual flair. There is one tradition that is omnipresent within Ra’shari culture and faith however, as relates to the telling of the Chronicle. Storytelling is taken very seriously among the People and every night when the caravans come to rest, one of the People is chosen to tell a story for the rest of their caravan that night. It is an honor to be chosen for this and a great sign of trust from the rest of the Caravan in the chosen person’s wisdom.